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<front>
<journal-meta>
<journal-id journal-id-type="publisher">ISPRS-Archives</journal-id>
<journal-title-group>
<journal-title>The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences</journal-title>
<abbrev-journal-title abbrev-type="publisher">ISPRS-Archives</abbrev-journal-title>
<abbrev-journal-title abbrev-type="nlm-ta">Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci.</abbrev-journal-title>
</journal-title-group>
<issn pub-type="epub">2194-9034</issn>
<publisher><publisher-name>Copernicus Publications</publisher-name>
<publisher-loc>Göttingen, Germany</publisher-loc>
</publisher>
</journal-meta>
<article-meta>
<article-id pub-id-type="doi">10.5194/isprs-archives-XLIX-B2-2026-795-2026</article-id>
<title-group>
<article-title>A Semi-Automated Pipeline for Extracting Architectural Plans from 3D LiDAR Data of Ancient Heritage Sites</article-title>
</title-group>
<contrib-group><contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Bartrick-Krana</surname>
<given-names>Marianna</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1">
<sup>1</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>de Lima-Hernandez</surname>
<given-names>Roberto</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1">
<sup>1</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Vandesande</surname>
<given-names>Aziliz</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1">
<sup>1</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Bassier</surname>
<given-names>Maarten</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1">
<sup>1</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
</contrib-group><aff id="aff1">
<label>1</label>
<addr-line>Dept. of Architecture, KU Leuven, Belgium</addr-line>
</aff>
<pub-date pub-type="epub">
<day>23</day>
<month>07</month>
<year>2026</year>
</pub-date>
<volume>XLIX-B2-2026</volume>
<fpage>795</fpage>
<lpage>800</lpage>
<permissions>
<copyright-statement>Copyright: &#x000a9; 2026 Marianna Bartrick-Krana et al.</copyright-statement>
<copyright-year>2026</copyright-year>
<license license-type="open-access">
<license-p>This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this licence, visit <ext-link ext-link-type="uri"  xlink:href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</ext-link></license-p>
</license>
</permissions>
<self-uri xlink:href="https://isprs-archives.copernicus.org/articles/XLIX-B2-2026/795/2026/isprs-archives-XLIX-B2-2026-795-2026.html">This article is available from https://isprs-archives.copernicus.org/articles/XLIX-B2-2026/795/2026/isprs-archives-XLIX-B2-2026-795-2026.html</self-uri>
<self-uri xlink:href="https://isprs-archives.copernicus.org/articles/XLIX-B2-2026/795/2026/isprs-archives-XLIX-B2-2026-795-2026.pdf">The full text article is available as a PDF file from https://isprs-archives.copernicus.org/articles/XLIX-B2-2026/795/2026/isprs-archives-XLIX-B2-2026-795-2026.pdf</self-uri>
<abstract>
<p>This paper presents a semi-automated pipeline for extracting architectural plans from terrestrial LiDAR point clouds of archaeological sites characterized by irregular geometries and significant surface degradation. The proposed workflow converts dense three-dimensional data into simplified two-dimensional representations by combining geometric alignment, expert-guided cross-section selection, feature detection using Intrinsic Shape Signatures (ISS), region-based segmentation, and polyline simplification. The method is specifically designed to handle rock-cut tomb environments, where erosion, noise, and non-planar surfaces complicate conventional Scan-to-Plan approaches. The pipeline is evaluated on six tombs from the Sheikh Said necropolis in Middle Egypt, covering a range of architectural configurations and preservation states. Results demonstrate that the method efficiently produces CAD-compatible outlines that capture the dominant structural geometry while significantly reducing manual drafting time. However, the accuracy of the generated plans depends on surface conditions, with degraded or ornamented areas introducing geometric artifacts that require expert refinement. The proposed approach provides a robust geometric baseline for archaeological documentation and highlights the potential of human-in-the-loop workflows for complex heritage environments.</p>
</abstract>
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